Aside from some quibbles that aren’t really worth getting into, I have no significant disagreement with your comments. There is nothing wrong with looking at people’s acts in practice and observing that they behave as if they operated with subjective probability estimates in some range. However, your statement that “one’s own probability assignments are not necessarily introspectable” basically restates my main point, which was exactly about the meaninglessness of analyzing one’s own common-sense judgments to arrive at a numerical probability estimate, which many people here, in contrast, consider to be the right way to increase the accuracy of one’s thinking. (Though I admit that it should probably be worded more precisely to make sure it’s interpreted that way.)
However, your statement that “one’s own probability assignments are not necessarily introspectable” basically restates my main point, which was exactly about the meaninglessness of analyzing one’s own common-sense judgments to arrive at a numerical probability estimate, which many people here, in contrast, consider to be the right way to increase the accuracy of one’s thinking.
As it happens, early on I voted your initial comment down (following the topsy-turvy rules of the main post) because based on my first impression I thought I agreed with you. Reconsideration of your comment in light of the ensuing discussion brought to my mind this seeming objection. But you have disarmed the objection, so I am back to agreement.
Aside from some quibbles that aren’t really worth getting into, I have no significant disagreement with your comments. There is nothing wrong with looking at people’s acts in practice and observing that they behave as if they operated with subjective probability estimates in some range. However, your statement that “one’s own probability assignments are not necessarily introspectable” basically restates my main point, which was exactly about the meaninglessness of analyzing one’s own common-sense judgments to arrive at a numerical probability estimate, which many people here, in contrast, consider to be the right way to increase the accuracy of one’s thinking. (Though I admit that it should probably be worded more precisely to make sure it’s interpreted that way.)
As it happens, early on I voted your initial comment down (following the topsy-turvy rules of the main post) because based on my first impression I thought I agreed with you. Reconsideration of your comment in light of the ensuing discussion brought to my mind this seeming objection. But you have disarmed the objection, so I am back to agreement.